The Business Platinum Card® from American Express review
This premium business card is rewarding right from the outset, giving big spending, business chargers the opportunity to earn mega bonus points within the first three months.
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The Business Platinum Card® from American Express
- Rewards
- 5X Membership Rewards® points on flights and prepaid hotels on AmexTravel.com, and 1X points for each dollar you spend on eligible purchases. Earn 1.5X points (that's an extra half point per dollar) on each eligible purchase at US construction material, hardware suppliers, electronic goods retailers, and software & cloud system providers, and shipping providers, as well as on purchases of $5,000 or more, on up to $2 million per Card Account per calendar year. Purchases eligible for multiple additional point bonuses will only receive the highest eligible bonus.
- Welcome Bonus
- Earn 150,000 Membership Rewards® points after you spend $20,000 in eligible purchases on the Card within the first 3 months of Card Membership.
- Annual Fee
- $695
Key Features
- Welcome Offer: Earn 150,000 Membership Rewards® points after you spend $20,000 in eligible purchases on the Card within the first 3 months of Card Membership.
- 5X Membership Rewards® points on flights and prepaid hotels on AmexTravel.com, and 1X points for each dollar you spend on eligible purchases.
- Earn 1.5X points (that's an extra half point per dollar) on each eligible purchase at US construction material, hardware suppliers, electronic goods retailers, and software & cloud system providers, and shipping providers, as well as on purchases of $5,000 or more, on up to $2 million per Card Account per calendar year. Purchases eligible for multiple additional point bonuses will only receive the highest eligible bonus.
- Unlock over $1,000 in statement credits on select purchases, including tech, recruiting and wireless in the first year of membership with the Business Platinum Card®. Enrollment required. See how you can unlock over $1,000 annually in credits on select purchases with the Business Platinum Card®, here.
- $200 Airline Fee Credit: Select one qualifying airline and then receive up to $200 in statement credits per calendar year when incidental fees are charged by the airline to the Card.
- $199 CLEAR® Plus Credit: Use your card and get up to $199 in statement credits per calendar year on your CLEAR® Plus Membership (subject to auto-renewal) when you use the Business Platinum Card®.
- The American Express Global Lounge Collection® can provide an escape at the airport. With complimentary access to more than 1,400 airport lounges across 140 countries and counting, you have more airport lounge options than any other credit card issuer on the market as of 03/2023.
- $695 Annual Fee.
- Terms Apply.
Editor Analysis:
- New cardholders can earn 150,000 Membership Rewards bonus points by spending $20,000 on eligible purchases in the first three months.
- This card gives you complimentary access to airport lounges around the world. Enrollment may be required
- Offset some of those travel expenses that add up fast, like checked bagged fees and in-flight refreshments, with up to $200 per year in airline fee credit with a pre-selected airline.
- The annual fee is substantial. If you don't expect to spend enough to offset the fee, you might want to consider a no-annual-fee travel rewards business card instead.
What are the benefits of CardName?
Heads up, big spenders with regular business travel responsibilities— CardName is made for you. American Express is a CardRatings advertiser.
If you’re familiar with the consumer version, CardName, you know that it comes with some impressive rewards-earning opportunities as well as the kind of added perks and features that make discerning customers sit up and take notice. The business version offers many of those same perks as well as a number of additional features that you would expect from a business card with a AnnualFees annual fee. (See Rates and Fees.)
CardName is rewarding right from the outset, giving big spending, business customers the opportunity to earn 150,000 Membership Rewards points once spending $20,000 on qualifying purchases within the first three months.
On an ongoing basis, you earn 5X Membership Rewards points for each $1 spent when you book flights and prepaid hotels via the American Express travel portal and 1X point per $1 on most other eligible purchases. Plus, earn an extra half-point (for 1.5X points) per $1 on each qualifying purchase of $5,000 or more (up to a cap) as well as on eligible purchases in select business categories, including those with U.S. construction material and hardware suppliers, with U.S. electronic goods retailers and software and cloud system providers, and with U.S. shipping providers.
CardRatings Tip
card_name offers a 35% Airline Bonus when you use Membership Rewards Pay with Points for all or part of a flight with your selected qualifying airline (any class) or business or first class with any airline. You can get 35% of the points back, up to 1 million bonus points per calendar year when the flight is booked on amextravel.com.
In addition to solid rewards on travel purchases, card_name takes care of its users while traveling as well.
CardName offers some impressive perks for travelers, including up to $200 each year in statement credit to cover incidental airline fees with one pre-selected airline, a fee credit for Global Entry or TSA PreCheck, a statement credit of up to $199 per year when you use your card for your CLEAR® Plus membership, and access to airport lounges around the globe. Enrollment required for select benefits.
Other American Express Business Platinum travel benefits include:
Airline credit
With CardName you can earn up to $200 annually in statement credit to cover incidental airline fees checked bags, in-flight meals, seat upgrades, etc. on a qualifying airline that you pre-select (the same airline that you’ll earn 35% of your points back on when you redeem). You’ll be able to change your selection each January if you want. If you take advantage of the full credit, you can go a long way toward offsetting the annual fee.
Lounge access
Just because you’re traveling for business (or not) doesn’t mean you can’t travel in style. CardName gives you access to airport lounges across 140 countries and counting. The American Express Global Lounge Collection offers travelers more lounge options than any other card on the market allowing your trip to be a luxurious one no matter what you’re traveling for. Enrollment may be required.
No foreign transaction fee
CardName has no foreign transaction fees, giving you peace of mind to use the card while you travel internationally. This benefit may seem like a minor one, but it really adds up compared to cards that do have foreign transaction fees. For example, cards without this perk generally charge around 3% on any foreign transactions made. Say you travel abroad five times a year, spending on average $5,000 each time you go, CardName could save you as much as $750 in fees. (See Rates and Fees)
How do you qualify for CardName?
Do you qualify for CardName?
The list of people who can apply for a small business card is long, and includes freelancers/self-employed individuals, entrepreneurs, small business owners/officers, owners/officers of established businesses, and owners/officers of startups. Most companies define “business" quite broadly when it comes to considering applicants for small business cards. To qualify for a business card, you must be an “authorized officer" of a company. Basically, this means that you must have the legal right to enter into borrowing arrangements with financial institutions on behalf of a business. If you are the owner of a sole proprietorship business or the sole owner of a small business, you are already an “authorized officer." You are, after all, the only owner of the company. It can be more complicated determining who ranks for businesses that have multiple owners. In general, though, most owners are also “authorized officers."
Issuers consider each application on its own merits, so don’t assume you don’t qualify just because your business might not fit that standard business model. Do keep in mind though that your personal credit history will likely be what is used to determine your eligibility and/or credit limit on a business card before you’ve built up a credit history for your business.
If your business doesn’t have a tax ID number (EIN), you can enter your personal social security number instead. In general, try to have the following information handy when you apply:
- Business name
- Business name as you want it to appear on the card
- Business address
- Type of business
- Tax ID number (or your social security number)
- Number of employees
- Annual revenue/sales
- Monthly expenses
- Number of years in business
- Ownership type (publicly traded, privately owned, etc.)
- Business structure (LLC, corporation, non-profit, etc.)
To learn more about who can qualify for a small business card, and how to apply for one, be sure to check out our “Who can apply for a business credit card" guide.
How do cardholders rate CardName?
CardRatings conducts a survey annually to learn what actual cardholders think of their cards. Here are the results for CardName:
| Current Scores | Past Scores | |
|---|---|---|
| Overall Score | 75.1 | 80.3 |
| Features Satisfaction | 7.5 | 8.1 |
| Customer Service | 7.4 | 8 |
| Website/App Usability | 7.9 | 7.8 |
| Likelihood of Continuing to Use | 7.3 | 8.1 |
| Recommend to a Friend/Colleague | 7.6 | 8.1 |
How CardName compares to other cards
CardName vs. CardName
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With premium travel benefits, and a high annual fee to match, CardName is a great alternative to the Business Platinum Card®. Both cards have an included $200 annual airline fee credit that can cover incidental airline charges, like baggage fees and in-flight refreshments with a pre-selected airline, and both have access to the Global Lounge Collection, offering travelers more lounge options than any other cards on the market. The personal card, however, has a unique travel perk that the business card lacks – Uber VIP status and Uber Cash to cover rides and/or Uber Eats orders in the U.S. up to $15 each month, and $35 in December. That can be up to $400 in annual Uber savings. The business card, on the other hand, offers up to $400 in statement credits annually by getting up to $200 semi-annually for U.S. purchases with Dell. Terms Apply. Enrollment required for select benefits.
Some key differentiators, in addition to one being a business and the other being a personal card, between the two cards are the new card member welcome bonus offers and the annual fees. CardName has an annual fee of AnnualFees and a welcome bonus offer of 80,000 bonus Membership Rewards points earned once you make $8,000 in eligible purchases in the first six months of card membership (See Rates and Fees). Business Platinum has an annual fee of AnnualFees and a welcome bonus offer of 150,000 Membership Rewards points earned after you spend $20,000 on eligible purchases within your first three months of card membership (See Rates and Fees).
The personal Platinum card earns 5X Membership Rewards points on flights booked directly with airlines or with American Express Travel (on up to $500,000 on these purchases per calendar year) and on prepaid hotels booked on amextravel.com, and 1X point on all other eligible purchases. The business card also offers the opportunity to get 50% more Membership Rewards points on eligible purchase of $5,000 or more, up to 1 million additional points per year. The business card also offers a 35% airline bonus when you use Membership Rewards Pay with Points for all or part of a flight with your selected qualifying airline.
CardName vs. CardName
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With a more modest annual fee, a great new card member welcome bonus offer and lucrative daily points earning, the CardName is a great substitute for the CardName. The CardName comes with a AnnualFees annual fee, much lower than the Business Platinum’s annual fee. The Business Gold card is also offering new cardholders the opportunity to earn 100,000 bonus Membership Rewards points after spending $15,000 in the first three months. (See Rates and Fees)
Where the Business Gold card really shines is in daily spend points earning. The Business Gold earns 4X Membership Rewards points on the two eligible categories where your business spends the most (each billing cycle) from six eligible categories. While your top two categories may change, you will earn 4X points on the first $150,000 in combined purchases from these categories each calendar year (then 1X thereafter). Only the top two categories each billing cycle will count towards the $150,000 cap. Additionally, earn 3X Membership Rewards points on flights and prepaid hotels booked on amextravel.com using your Business Gold card.
Is CardName a good card?
Frequent business travelers who appreciate some added comforts when they travel and can offset the hefty annual fee with the rewards they earn are ideal candidates for CardName. If the added travel perks don’t mean that much to you, you might want to consider another business card with higher rewards-earning potential in additional categories.
Frequently asked questions
Is the American Express Business Platinum Card hard to get?
Is the Platinum Amex business card worth it?
Our Methodology
Survey methodology: CardRatings commissioned Op4G in September 2023 to conduct surveys among 1,869 cardholders nationwide. CardRatings website analytics from Jan. 1, 2023-Aug. 31, 2023 were used to determine a selection of the most popular cards and additional cards were included to add survey breadth. Responses to each of nine questions were given on a scale of 1-10 and respondents’ scores were then averaged under broad topics. To determine the overall score, responses from questions 1-8 were summed and the answer to “How likely are you to recommend this card to a friend, coworker or family member?" was double weighted. Current Scores reflect scores from the most recent survey (2023); “Past Scores" reflect scores from the 2022 survey.
Disclaimer:The information in this article is believed to be accurate as of the date it was written. Please keep in mind that credit card offers change frequently. Therefore, we cannot guarantee the accuracy of the information in this article. Reasonable efforts are made to maintain accurate information. See the online credit card application for full terms and conditions on offers and rewards. Please verify all terms and conditions of any credit card prior to applying.
This content is not provided by any company mentioned in this article. Any opinions, analyses, reviews or recommendations expressed here are those of the author’s alone, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any such company. CardRatings.com does not review every company or every offer available on the market.
For rates and fees for the American Express cards mentioned in this post, please see the following links: CardName (See Rates and Fees); CardName (See Rates and Fees); CardName (See Rates and Fees)
